Steelers to Work out Plaxico Burress, Mike Kafka and More AFC North News

To add depth at quarterback while Byron Leftwich and Ben Roethlisberger recover from their respective rib and shoulder injuries, the Pittsburgh Steelers are set to work out free agent quarterbacks Mike Kafka and Brian Hoyer, reports Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Even more surprisingly, they are also hosting former Steelers, Giants and Jets receiver Plaxico Burress for a physical, indicating their interest in him is serious.

With two quarterbacks and now two wide receivers (Antonio Brown and Jerricho Cotchery) ailing, the Steelers are being extremely aggressive. They are one game up in the Wild Card playoff race and two games behind the AFC North-leading Ravens with four divisional contests left in the season. Every win matters, and the Steelers are clearly trying to pull out all the stops when it comes to free agents.

Baltimore Ravens

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It's not yet time for Joe Flacco and the Ravens to return to the negotiation table.

Mike Preston of the Baltimore Sun says that not only does the timing have to be right for the Baltimore Ravens to continue contract negotiations with quarterback Joe Flacco, he also needs to show more consistency on the field before he can talk in earnest about getting a new deal.

Carson Palmer returns to Cincinnati this Sunday as a member of the opposing team.

Cincinnati Bengals

Paul Daugherty of the Cincinnati Enquirer breaks down his thoughts on Carson Palmer, the former Cincinnati Bengals quarterback who will be coming to town to face his old team at the helm of his new one, the Oakland Raiders.

Bleacher Report's Matt Gray breaks down the players who will be of the most value to the Bengals as they head into the postseason-deciding stretch of games.

The rib and shoulder injuries Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Byron Leftwich sustained in Sunday night's loss to the Baltimore Ravens will have him sidelined for this Sunday, reports Alan Robinson of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review; Charlie Batch will be under center when the team takes on the Cleveland Browns.

Nick DeWitt of Bleacher Report says that Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin and the coaching staff have directly led to some of the team's struggles—and losses—this year.